Champions Cup, Round Two - Teams and Predictions

SATURDAY AND SUNDAY PREVIEW: The Sharks can take a huge step towards qualification for the Round of 16 of the Champions Cup if they can upset Leicester Tigers at Welford Road on Saturday.

However, a long list of injuries has thrown a spanner in the works when it comes to their preparation for the clash.

They currently have 15 players on the injury list and it includes Springboks Eben Etzebeth, Lukhanyo Am, Grant Williams, Makazole Mapimpi, Vincent Koch and Bongi Mbonambi.

They also left a few other Boks at home to manage workloads ahead of United Rugby Championship derbies against the Bulls and Stormers later this month.

The Sharks banked full points against Exeter Chiefs in their Champions Cup Round One clash in Durban last weekend, but they will be underdogs in Leicester.

John Plumtree’s side will be up against a team that includes Springbok flyhalf Handre Pollard and Los Pumas captain Julian Montoya, as well as the likes of England internationals Freddie Steward, Dan Cole, Ben Youngs, Jack van Poorvliet and Tommy Reffell.

What was clear on the opening weekend was that teams tend to lift themselves to something akin to Test match intensity for Champions Cup games – but particularly so for home games. Leicester were away last week, where they lost to Bordeaux Begles, but Pollard and many of the other stars weren’t part of that team.

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“We have to make sure Handre Pollard doesn’t dominate the day with his kicking game,” said Plumtree.

“We’ve got to match them up front and that will be a big test for us.

“They gather a lot of momentum through their ball carrying. They’ve got some big ball carriers, so we’ve got to be able to stop all of that and then obviously force our game on them.

“We’ve got to make sure that we create some opportunities and get some territory and put some pressure on them and if we can do that then our confidence will go up.”

It is the best in England that the Bulls will be preparing for when they look to bounce back from last week’s disappointing defeat to Saracens, where at times they looked completely spooked by Storm Darragh, by beating Premiership champions Northampton Saints at Loftus.

The afternoon heat and rarified atmosphere of the Highveld will help the Bulls, while the Saints can expect a double backlash from the Pretoria team.

Not only will the Bulls be desperate to atone for last week’s defeat, but they will also remember the beating they took from the Saints in last year’s quarterfinal at Franklin’s Gardens.

Asked about his expectations of the visiting English outfit and whether or not revenge is at the top of his mind, Bulls Director of Rugby Jake White said he expects a tough challenge and is particularly keen to see how the visitors adapt to the conditions.

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“I do not talk about revenge. Rugby is different now,” said White.

“They [Saints] beat us last year, and they beat us fair and square.

“So, what happened last year has now become immaterial – modern rugby players do not feed off the revenge perspective.

“They have five international backs and the other backs are just as dangerous and they were there when they carved us to pieces last year.

“What I am looking forward to is to see if they can play their way at altitude with the heat and travel, and if they do, then hats off to them.

“If they can come to Loftus and run like they like to run, play like they want to play and can play, and beat us here; then you have got to say that they are a good team.”

On the pressure of having to win to keep their tournament hopes alive, White responded: “Our progression in the tournament is not necessarily pinned on tomorrow’s [Saturday’s] results but every Saturday is a must-win for us. Even if you are playing a friendly or pre-season, that’s the club we represent.”

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Unlike the Bulls, the Stormers did have conditions that suited their running game last weekend in Gqeberha, but they collided with a Toulon team that was determined to make a statement by winning in South Africa.

In a game that could have gone either way and which was played at a furious intensity, Toulon prevailed and the emotion with which they greeted the final whistle showed how much it meant to them.

It eases some of the pressure as they welcome the reigning URC champions, Glasgow Warriors, on Saturday – although given how aggressive they were in Gqeberha, ‘welcome’ probably isn’t an appropriate word.

Neither is it necessarily an appropriate word to use for Harlequins, who will start as strong favourites against a Stormers team that is fighting for survival in the competition.

If the Sharks win, they will almost certainly be through to the Round of 16, but for the Stormers, it is the exact opposite – defeat will leave them as probable also-rans and they will miss out on the Round of 16 for the first time in their third year of participation in the Champions Cup.

However, a creditable showing could do wonders for the Stormers’ confidence after this as they have taken an under-strength team to London to counteract the logistical hurdle that the trip might pose to their important URC derby against the Lions in Cape Town the following week.

Last year they gained a lot even in defeat when they adopted a similar policy to an away game against Leicester Tigers.

On last season’s defeat to the Tigers, Stormers playmaker Jean-Luc du Plessis said: “We were quite unlucky to not come away with the result in that game, but I think that performance instilled a lot of belief.

“We know it’s always tough going away from home in these big European games, but we know as a team what we are capable of.

“We also have last year’s game against Leicester to sort of recall and get belief from it.

“We were only five minutes away from getting the result.”

See below for Saturday and Sunday’s teams and predictions!

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Saturday, December 14:

Bulls v Northampton Saints
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 15.00 SAST; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Bulls by 13 points.

Teams:

Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Canan Moodie, 12 David Kriel, 11 Devon Williams, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Cameron Hanekom, 7 Elrigh Louw (captain), 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 JF van Heerden, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 17 Alulutho Tshakweni, 18 Francois Klopper, 19 Deon Slabbert, 20 Kuyenzeka Xaba, 21 Zak Burger, 22 Boeta Chamberlain, 23 Stedman Gans.

Northampton: 15 George Furbank (captain), 14 Tommy Freeman, 13 Fraser Dingwall, 12 Rory Hutchinson, 11 Ollie Sleightholme, 10 Fin Smith, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Juarno Augustus, 7 Henry Pollock, 6 Alex Coles, 5 Tom Lockett, 4 Temo Mayanavanua, 3 Elliot Millar-Mills, 2 Curtis Langdon, 1 Emmanuel Iyogun.
Replacements: 16 Craig Wright, 17 Tarek Haffar, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Chunya Munga, 20 Angus Scott-Young, 21 Tom Pearson, 22 Archie McParland, 23 George Hendy.

Referee: Luc Ramos (France)
Assistant referee: Jeremy Rozier (France), Adrien Marbot (France)
TMO: Thomas Charabas (France)

Ulster v Union Bordeaux-Bègles
(Ravenhill Stadium, Belfast – Kick-off: 15.15 GMT; 16.15 CET)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Bordeaux-Bègles by 10 points.

Teams:

Ulster: 15 Mike Lowry, 14 Werner Kok, 13 Jude Postlethwaite, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Aidan Morgan, 9 Nathan Doak, 8 Dave McCann, 7 Nick Timoney, 6 Cormac Izuchukwu, 5 Kieran Treadwell, 4 Iain Henderson (captain), 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Eric O’Sullivan.
Replacements: 16 John Andrew, 17 Andrew Warwick, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Harry Sheridan, 20 Marcus Rea, 21 Dave Shanahan, 22 James Humphreys, 23 Rory Telfer.

Bordeaux: 15 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Nicolas Depoortere, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Arthur Retiere, 10 Joey Carbery, 9 Maxime Lucu (captain), 8 Tevita Tatafu, 7 Lachie Swinton, 6 Marko Gazzotti, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Carlü Sadie, 2 Romain Latterrade, 1 Jefferson Poirot.
Replacements: 16 Maxime Lamothe, 17 Ugo Boniface, 18 Ben Tameifuna, 19 Adam Coleman, 20 Alexandre Ricard, 21 Bastien Vergnes, 22 Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 23 Matéo Garcia.

Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
Assistant referees: Franco Rosella (Italy), Alex Frasson (Italy)
TMO: Stefano Roscini (Italy)

Leicester Tigers v Sharks
(Welford Road, Leicester – Kick-off: 17.30 GMT; 19.30 SAST)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Leicester by 16 points.

Teams:

Leicester: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Josh Bassett, 13 Izaia Perese, 12 Solomone Kata, 11 Ollie Hassell-Collins, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Jack van Poortvliet, 8 Olly Cracknell, 7 Tommy Reffell, 6 Hanro Liebenberg, 5 George Martin, 4 Harry Wells, 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Julian Montoya (captain), 1 Nicky Smith.
Replacements: 16 Charlie Clare, 17 James Cronin, 18 Dan Cole, 19 Cameron Henderson, 20 Emeka Ilione, 21 Ben Youngs, 22 Jamie Shillcock, 23 Joe Woodward.

Sharks: 15 Jordan Hendrikse, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Ethan Hooker, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Yaw Penxe, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Manu Tshituka, 7 Lappies Labuschagne, 6 Phepsi Buthelezi (captain), 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Jason Jenkins, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Dylan Richardson, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu.
Replacements: 16 Ethan Bester, 17 Phatu Ganyane, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Corne’ Rahl, 20 Tino Mavesere, 21 Bradley Davids, 22 Diego Appollis, 23 Hakeem Kunene.

Referee: Andrea Piardi (Italy)
Assistant referee: Filippo Russo (Italy), Manuel Bottino (Italy)
TMO: Matteo Liperini (Italy)

Leinster v Clermont Auvergne
(Lansdowne Road, Dublin – Kick-off: 17.30 GMT; 18.30 CET)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Leinster by 12 points.

Teams:

Leinster: 15 Jordie Barrett, 14 Liam Turner, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (captain), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Max Deegan, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tom Clarkson, 2 Ronan Kelleher, 1 Andrew Porter.
Replacements: 16 Gus McCarthy, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Rabah Slimani, 19 RG Snyman, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Fintan Gunne, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Andrew Osborne.

Clermont: 15 Alex Newsome, 14 Lucas Tauzin, 13 Pierre Fouyssac, 12 George Moala, 11 Alivereti Raka, 10 Irae Simone, 9 Baptiste Jauneau, 8 Fritz Lee (captain), 7 Alexandre Fischer, 6 Killian Tixeront, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Peceli Yato, 3 Michael Ala’alatoa, 2 Etienne Fourcade, 1 Etienne Falgoux.
Replacements: 16 Barnabe Massa, 17 Giorgi Akhaladze, 18 Cristian Ojovan, 19 Oskar Rixen, 20 Antoine Chalus-Cercy, 21 Sebastien Bezy, 22 Ben Urdapilleta, 23 Theo Giral.

Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant referees: Jack Makepeace (England), Jamie Leahy (England)
TMO: Stuart Terheege (England)

Harlequins v Stormers
(Twickenham Stoop, London – Kick-off: 20.00 GMT; 22.00 SAST)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Harlequins by 19 points.

Teams:

Harlequins: 15 Tyrone Green, 14 Rodrigo Isgro, 13 Oscar Beard, 12 Luke Northmore, 11 Cadan Murley, 10 Marcus Smith, 9 Danny Care, 8 Alex Dombrandt (captain), 7 James Chisholm, 6 Chandler Cunningham-South, 5 George Hammond, 4 Irne Herbst, 3 Simon Kerrod, 2 Jack Walker, 1 Fin Baxter
Replacements: 16 Sam Riley, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Harry Browne, 20 Jack Kenningham, 21 Will Evans, 22 Will Porter, 23 Jarrod Evans

Stormers: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Jean-Luc du Plessis, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Willie Engelbrecht, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Dave Ewers, 5 Connor Evans, 4 Salmaan Moerat (captain), 3 Sazi Sandi, 2 JJ Kotze, 1 Vernon Matongo.
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Leon Lyons, 18 Corne Weilbach, 19 Gary Porter, 20 Paul de Villiers, 21 Dewaldt Duvenage, 22 Jonathan Roche, 23 JC Mars.

Referee: Ludovic Cayre (France)
Assistant referees: Evan Urruzmendi (France), Jonathan Gasnier (France)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (France)

Stade Rochelais v Bristol Bears
(Stade Marcel Deflandre, La Rochelle – Kick-off: 21.00 CET; 20.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Stade Rochelais by 11 points.

Teams:

Stade Rochelais: Dillyn Leyds, 14 Jack Nowell, 13 UJ Seuteni, 12 Jonathan Danty, 11 Teddy Thomas, 10 Ihaia West, 9 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 8 Grégory Alldritt (captain), 7 Matthias Haddad, 6 Oscar Jegou, 5 Will Skelton, 4 Kane Douglas, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Tolu Latu, 1 Reda Wardi.
Replacements: 16 Quentin Lespiaucq, 17 Louis Penverne, 18 Georges-Henri Colombe, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Levani Botia, 21 Judicael Cancoriet, 22 Thomas Berjon, 23 Jules Favre.

Bristol: 15 Benjamin Elizalde, 14 Jack Bates, 13 Kalaveti Ravouvou, 12 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 11 Gabriel Ibitoye, 10 Sam Worsley, 9 Harry Randall, 8 Viliame Mata, 7 Jake Heenan, 6 Santiago Grondona, 5 Joe Owen, 4 Steven Luatua (captain), 3 Lovejoy Chawatama, 2 Gabriel Oghre, 1 Ellis Genge.
Replacements: 16 Harry Thacker, 17 Jake Woolmore, 18 Max Lahiff, 19 Jamie Hodgson, 20 Ben Grondona, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Rich Lane, 23 Joe Jenkins.

Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Keane Davison (Ireland), Daniel Carson (Ireland)
TMO: Mark Patton (Ireland)

Sunday, December 15:

Benetton v Bath
(Stadio Monigo, Treviso – Kick-off: 14.00 CET; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Bath by nine points.

Teams:

Benetton: 15 Rhyno Smith, 14 Louis Lynagh, 13 Tommaso Menoncello, 12 Malakai Fekitoa, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Tomas Albornoz, 9 Andy Uren, 8 Toa Halafihi, 7 Manuel Zuliani, 6 Sebastian Negri, 5 Federico Ruzza (captain), 4 Niccolo Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Siua Maile, 1 Mirco Spagnolo.
Replacements: 16 Bautista Bernasconi, 17 Thomas Gallo, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Riccardo Favretto, 20 Alessandro Izekor, 21 Alessandro Garbisi, 22 Jacob Umaga, 23 Nacho Brex.

Bath: 15 Tom de Glanville, 14 Regan Grace, 13 Max Ojomoh, 12 Cameron Redpath, 11 Ruaridh McConnochie, 10 Orlando Bailey, 9 Louis Schreuder, 8 Miles Reid (captain), 7 Ethan Staddon, 6 Josh Bayliss, 5 Ross Molony, 4 Ewan Richards, 3 Billy Sela, 2 Niall Annett, 1 Francois van Wyk.
Replacements: 16 Kepu Tuipulotu, 17 Arthur Cordwell, 18 Thomas du Toit, 19 Quinn Roux, 20 Ted Hill, 21 Tom Carr-Smith, 22 Louie Hennessey, 23 Jaco Coetzee.

Referee: Sam Grove-White (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Ruairidh Campbell (Scotland), Jonny Perriam (Scotland)
TMO: Dave Sutherland (Scotland)

Stade Francais Paris v Saracens
(Stade Jean Bouin, Paris – Kick-off: 14.00 CET; 13.00 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Stade Francais Paris by two points.

Teams:

Stade Francais: 15 Leo Barre, 14 Peniasi Dakuwaqa, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Jeremy Ward, 11 Charles Laloi, 10 Zack Henry, 9 Brad Weber, 8 Juan Martin Scelzo, 7 Ryan Chapuis, 6 Sekou Macalou, 5 Tanginoa Halaifonua, 4 Paul Gabrillagues (captain), 3 Paul Alo-Emile, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 1 Clement Castets.
Replacements: 16 Lucas Peyresblanques, 17 Moses Alo-Emile, 18 Hugo N’Diaye, 19 Setareki Turagacoke, 20 Andy Timo, 21 Yoan Tanga, 22 Louis Foursans-Bourdette, 23 Samuel Ezeala.

Saracens: 15 Elliot Daly, 14 Liam Williams, 13 Lucio Cinti Luna, 12 Nick Tompkins, 11 Rotimi Segun, 10 Fergus Burke, 9 Ivan van Zyl, 8 Tom Willis, 7 Ben Earl, 6 Theo McFarland, 5 Nick Isiekwe, 4 Maro Itoje (captain), 3 Marco Riccioni, 2 Jamie George, 1 Rhys Carre.
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Phil Brantingham, 18 Alec Clarey, 19 Harry Wilson, 20 Juan Martin Gonzalez, 21 Gareth Simpson, 22 Tiff Eden, 23 Olly Hartley.

Referee: Hollie Davidson (Scotland)
Assistant referees: Finlay Brown (Scotland), Rob McDowell (Scotland)
TMO: Ian Tempest (England)

RC Toulon v Glasgow Warriors
(Stade Felix Mayol, Toulon – Kick-off: 16.15 CET; 15.15 GMT)

Prediction

@rugby365com: RC Toulon by five points.

Teams:

Toulon: 15 Marius Domon, 14 Jiuta Wainiqolo, 13 Leicester Fainga’anuku, 12 Jérémy Sinzelle, 11 Gabin Villiere, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 9 Baptiste Serin, 8 Facundo Isa, 7 Charles Ollivon (captain), 6 Lewis Ludlam, 5 Brian Alainu’uese, 4 David Ribbans, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Teddy Baubigny, 1 Dany Priso.
Replacements: 16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Daniel Brennan, 18 Beka Gigashvili, 19 Matthias Halagahu, 20 Selevasio Tolofua, 21 Jules Danglot, 22 Enzo Herve, 23 Setariki Tuicuvu.

Glasgow: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Jamie Dobie, 13 Sione Tuipulotu (captain), 12 Stafford McDowall, 11 Kyle Rowe, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Ben Afshar, 8 Jack Mann, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Henco Venter, 5 Alex Samuel, 4 Olujare Oguntibeju, 3 Sam Talakai, 2 Gregor Hiddleston, 1 Jamie Bhatti.
Replacements: 16 Johnny Matthews, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Zander Fagerson, 19 Scott Cummings, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 Angus Fraser, 22 George Horne, 23 Tom Jordan.

Referee: Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant referees: Christophe Ridley (England), Jonathan Healy (England)
TMO: Mike Adamson (Scotland)

Exeter Chiefs v Stade Toulousain
(Sandy Park, Exeter – Kick-off: 17.30 GMT; 18.30 CET)

Prediction

@rugby365com: Stade Toulousain by 16 points.

Teams:

Exeter: 15 Josh Hodge, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Ben Hammersley, 12 Tamati Tua, 11 Tommy Wyatt, 10 Henry Slade, 9 Stu Townsend, 8 Ross Vintcent, 7 Jacques Vermeulen (captain), 6 Ethan Roots, 5 Richard Capstick, 4 Rus Tuima, 3 Ehren Painter, 2 Dan Frost, 1 Will Goodrick-Clarke.
Replacements: 16 Jack Yeandle, 17 Kwenzo Blose, 18 Jimmy Roots, 19 Dafydd Jenkins, 20 Greg Fisilau, 21 Will Becconsall, 22 Will Haydon-Wood, 23 Zack Wimbush.

Toulouse: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Juan-Cruz Mallia, 13 Pierre-Louis Barassi, 12 Santiago Chocobares, 11 Matthis Lebel, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont (captain), 8 Alexandre Roumat, 7 Jack Willis, 6 François Cros, 5 Emmanuel Meafou, 4 Thibaud Flament, 3 Dorian Aldegheri, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Rodrigue Neti.
Replacements: 16 Guillaume Cramont, 17 David Ainu’u, 18 Joel Merkler, 19 Joshua Brennan, 20 Théo Ntamack, 21 Mathis Castro-Ferreira, 22 Paul Graou, 23 Blair Kinghorn.

Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Robbie Jenkinson (Ireland), Padraic Reidy (Ireland)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)

Additional source: @ChampionsCup